Thomas Hicks (athlete)

Thomas James Hicks ( born January 6, 1872 in Birmingham, † December 2, 1963 ) was an American track and field athlete. He won at the Olympic Summer Games 1904 gold medal in the marathon.

Work

Hicks, who was born in England, was the winner of an extraordinary marathon at the Summer Games in St. Louis. Before he reached the goal of his rival Frederick Lorz had already been run into the stadium after he was (caused by dehydration) at kilometer 14 with a muscle spasm increased in a car and began to run again until shortly before the finish because the car has a had engine trouble and he did not want to wait in the sun. Lorz was hailed as the winner until he admitted that he had allowed himself a joke.

Hicks ' run gives an impressive insight into the sports medical knowledge of the early 20th century. At kilometer 24, he asked for some water, but he could only rinse his mouth with distilled water. Three kilometers later, he got a milligram of strychnine - an analeptic, which stands on the doping list today - with an egg white ( raw egg white ). This procedure was repeated at kilometer 32. This time there was an egg longer and a sip of brandy. In addition, the whole body it was rubbed with warm water. Over the last mile he got two eggs, a little brandy and the bathroom was repeated. On that day prevailed temperatures of 28 ° C in the shade, and the track was located mostly in the sun.

The description of the care of the rotor is from an article by Charles P. Lucas, the coach of Hicks. He founded the victory of Hicks about the increased competition in the correct care ("... But They Lacked proper care on the road ...").